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When I am a Colorado Voter, I Shall Be Purple

According to Republican brainiac Karl Rove, Colorado is a swing state. Although Colorado went for George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004, Coloradoans notably voted Democrats into Congress in 2004, including one of the country's few Latino senators, Ken Salazar. When Katherine Lee Bates described Colorado scenery in her iconic "America the Beautiful" as "purple mountain majesties" back in 1893, she unknowingly hearkened to my state's non-red, non-blue, but purple status.

With its history of voters splitting their ballots between parties (me included), Colorado is ripe to be picked by a Democratic candidate this year, especially with the continued intensity of the Democratic primary and the party convention being in Denver this summer. Besides Colorado, other states like Iowa, New Mexico, and Nevada are also on the bubble. As blogger Kristen Breitweiser puts it, swing states are the only ones that matter because Democrats must win several of them to have a chance.

I am thrilled that my Colorado vote could make a pivotal difference, rather than being a foregone conclusion, presumed by one party or the other to be owned already. But which Democratic candidate can transform purple states into a blue one? Hillary thinks she is the one, and she may be for other states. But I think only the devotion of Coloradoans for Obama could turn my state from its presidentially Republican track record. And winning Colorado may be enough to get to Pennsylvania Avenue. So, Democrats, choose wisely.

Do you live in a red or blue state and are frustrated that your vote may not make a difference? Or are you a swinger too, and, if so, which Democrat do you think would turn your state blue?